A helicopter carries water to put out a forest fire (Photo: AFP)
Jakarta (VNA) - Indonesia is enhancing measures to terminate forestfires across the archipelagic nation as the number of hotspots risesignificantly.
A total of 21 helicopters and 212 Cassa planes have been deployed to conductwater bombings and creating artificial rains, spokesman of national disastermanagement agency Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said on August 22.
A satellite image showed that a total of 538 hotspots from west to east of thecountry with most of them detected in Borneo Island in the central parts and easternPapua province, the spokesman said, adding that the number of hotspots willrise at the end of August and September.
Soldiers, policemen and personnel from disaster management agency as well asvolunteers have been taking part in the battle against the fires, he stressed.Six provinces situated in Sumatra Island and Borneo Island have declaredemergency condition over the fires, Sutopo revealed.
Lack of water and difficulties in reaching the affected areas are among themajor challenges to douse the fires, he said.
However, the size of forest fire-affected areas has declined to about 20,000hectares at present, from 438,000 hectares and 2.61 million hectaresrespectively in 2016 and 2017, the official said.
The spokesman warned people to stay alert over a greater potential of expansionof fires next month.
Indonesia has frequently experienced forest fires with the biggest one in 2015,causing a huge financial losses and health problems for local people.-VNA
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A helicopter carries water to put out a forest fire (Photo: AFP) 
